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Choral and instrumental music to share spotlight with athletics in 2014 Gay Games

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Many participants in the Gay Games attend primarily in order to take part in the band and choral performances, similar to this one from the 2006 Gay Games in Chicago.
(Amy Moseley/Federation of Gay Games)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Sports may be the backbone of the 2014 Gay Games, but music is its heart.

Just as thousands of athletes will flock to Cleveland to demonstrate their physical prowess, so will countless others submit their best in the form of singing and playing instruments.

"The origin of the games is doing whatever you do in an open environment," said Tom Pike, culture manager of the 2014 games. "It's really about sharing and spotlighting without fear of discrimination."

Discriminating taste, of course, is more than welcome. Between big-name performers and high-level choral and band concerts to participation by the Cleveland Orchestra, the games hold out the promise of artistic as well as athletic delights.

No way could it be otherwise. While being held in Northeast Ohio, a region known for its music, the games wouldn't be complete if some events weren't also held at Severance Hall, Blossom Music Center, the Cleveland Museum of Art and Playhouse Square.

"The games are a great civic endeavor, and it made sense for us to support them," said Carol Lee Iott, the orchestra's director of strategy and special initiatives. "It's great way for us as international ambassadors to represent Cleveland."

Officially, the games don't kick off until Aug. 9. But the music will actually begin playing in the name of the games several days beforehand.

First up is the Cleveland Orchestra. This Sunday, July 27, at Blossom Music Center, the group will welcome Gay Games participants and volunteers to the region with a pops program, open to the general public, titled "Broadway Standing Ovations." Then comes a special Wade Oval Wednesdays show Aug. 6 by Red Light Roxy, a Cleveland-based jazz band.

Later, on Aug. 15, the orchestra will host the same crowd again, along with dignitaries from Paris, site of the next Gay Games, at its second "Summers@Severance" program at Severance Hall. The concert, titled "The Beethoven Experience," will be conducted by Jahja Ling and feature the composer's "Choral Fantasy" and Symphony No. 4. Two other "Summers" programs are scheduled for Aug. 1 and 29.

Much also is taking place directly under the banner of the games. During the Aug. 9 opening ceremony, for instance, a specially organized group called the Festival Chorus will rub shoulders on a three-hour show with such star performers as Lance Bass, Alex Newell, the Pointer Sisters and Andrea McArdle.

"We're not going to have all the talking heads that a lot of events like these have," Pike said of the opening.

That same choral group, along with Cleveland's North Coast Men's Chorus, will later gather in the State Theatre at Playhouse Square to present a choral extravaganza Aug. 13 titled "The Big Cleveland Sing." A similar ensemble, the 2014 Gay Games Team Band, will occupy the State on Aug. 12, giving a formal concert under Jadine Louie.

Medals and other prizes won't be part of either affair. Still, rest assured, with 150 people from around the world involved in each performance group, the shows are certain to constitute very real accomplishments.

Behind each concert will come three full days of rehearsal, comparable in scope and intensity to the athletic contests going on elsewhere. Many of those participating in the concerts will have come to the games just to make music.

"It's kind of an event, even though it's not a competition," Pike said of the cultural components of the games. "We urge just as many people to get tickets and be a part of the spectacle all week long."

Classical, choral and Broadway music might seem like secondary roles in an event dominated by athletics. But they are not, especially in the case of the 2014 event.

What exactly persuaded Gay Games officials to select Northeast Ohio as a host is impossible to know for certain. But Pike said he believes the region's cultural venues and organizations had a great deal to do with it.

"They toured every single aspect of the city and saw our rich availability of great spaces," said Pike. "For them, I think was really natural to embrace music."

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